Los Angeles Reconsiders Mural Ban

Ten years after Los Angeles officials placed a moratorium on the creation of new murals, City Council is now being asked to vote on a law that would welcome them back into the city’s landscape. The ban, which began sometime in 2003, was largely in part due to the increased use of these murals as advertisements. However, the legislation was being used to eradicate street art altogether.

A new Mural Ordinance being put forward by The City Council’s Planning and Land Use Management Committee is going up for vote on August 20th and would, if assed, effectively lift the ban on murals on private property. The proposed ordinance specifically defines murals as non-commercial works of art, much different form signs or advertisements, which are subject to different sets of rules and regulations.

The proposal includes two distinct proposed options: One allows for the creation of murals on single-family homes if they are approved by community boards, while the other prohibits them outright. Either way, many Los Angeles residents believe that the current ban has directly hindered the work of artists, knowing that it’s reversal could very well spark a renaissance of new murals across the city. (Image: MuralConservancy)